america" host robin roberts appeared on air with some fantastic news. >> the last bone marrow test showed no abnormalities. the majority of the marrow is my sister's and it is healthy, praise god. what all this means, by doctors, waiting for this information, to be able to tell me i can begin the process of returning to the anchor chair. i'm coming home. >> coming home. 52-year-old told her fellow hosts she will be doing a dry run behind the scenes next week. and justin timberlake fans, the wait is over. they released a new single earlier today. check it out. ♪ as long as i've got my suit and tie ♪ ♪ i'm going to leave it all on the floor tonight ♪ >> it is called "suit and tie," featured jay-z, justin, because we're friends, i guess i can refer to him by his first name.

justin timberlake is going to be on the album. it's his first album since 2006. hey, quick thank you to the l.a. bureau and golden globes crew for hosting me here in los angeles. i'm back in atlanta tomorrow. to washington, joe johns at the helm of "the situation room." happening now, president obama draws a line, which republicans already insist they're going to ignore. welcome to a new year of washington gridlock. lance armstrong is apologizing. but what exactly is he admitting he's done wrong? and suzy orman's joining us to explain why you'll have to spend less money this year, and what you need to do to make up for it. wolf blitzer is off today. i'm joe johns. you're in "the situation room." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

we begin with washington's latest standoff. during a white house news conference today, president obama told congressional republicans they will not, in his words, collect a ransom by demanding spending cuts as a condition for raising the debt ceiling. the house of representatives is back in session today, too, and republicans are just as adamant, insisting they won't raise the debt limit, unless the president goes along with spending cuts. let's go live to cnn white house correspondent brianna keilar. >> reporter: president obama stating very clearly today that he will not negotiate deficit reduction, tax increases and spending cuts attached to the debt ceiling. this of course does follow that bruising battle the year before last, where he did negotiate on the issue, and the u.s. nearly went to the brink of default. he said that congress has to pay the bills that it's already racked up. >> you don't go out to dinner

and then, you know, eat all you want and then leave without paying the check. and if you do, you're breaking the law. and congress should think about it the same way that the american people do. you don't -- now, if congress want, to have a debate about maybe we shouldn't go out to dinner next time, maybe we should go to a more modest restaurant, that's fine. that's the debate that we should have. >> reporter: in this press conference that was called last minute in the east room, president obama said he will negotiate a deal on deficit reduction but not, as he put it, quote, with a gun to the head of the american people. as you know, joe, republicans are saying they're not going to increase the debt ceiling unless they get spending cuts in return. so, it really throws into question, as president obama obviously is trying to disarm them, trying to make moot,

really, this one pretty hefty card they're able to play here throughout this battle. it throws into question how tackle things like entitlement reform and tax reform and also those spending cuts that were only put off for a couple months. spending cuts that are set to kick in at the end of the month. how all of of that plays out. >> brianna, for the first time, the president actually responded to questions about the administration not having enough women in the second term cabinet. what did he say? >> reporter: he stressed his record on this during his first term, that hillary clinton was the secretary of state, still is, but is going to be stepping down and will be replaced by a man. he stressed that janet napolitano is heading the department of homeland security and at least for now appears to be staying there. he stressed as well that he appointed two women to the supreme court. and he also told people to essentially wait a sec, he urged some patience.

>> i would suggest everybody kind of wait till they've seen all my appointments, who's in the white house staff and who's in my cabinet, before they rush to judgment. >> reporter: but for now, joe, there is still some criticism over this because his recent picks, which really are top cabinet posts, treasury, state, defense, cia director, have all been white men and that has rankled a number of critics, particularly female critics. >> brianna keilar at the white house, thank you. cnn chief political analyst gloria borger is with me here in "the situation room" right now. and, you know, of course we've got some quick reaction from house speaker boehner -- >> yeah, boom. >> absolutely, let's put it up. i'll read it. the american people do not support raising the debt ceiling without reducing government spending at the same time. the consequences of failing to increase the debt ceiling are real, but so too are the consequences of allowing our spending problem to go unresolved. so it certainly appears we're set up for another major showdown already. >> we are. i thirn it's going to be a

bigger showdown in fact than the fiscal cliff. you know, the president today said, quote, we have to stop lurching from crisis to crisis to crisis. then he went and set the stage for yet another crisis, right. this time of course it' over the debt ceiling. and it's going to be big, because it really reflects two different visions of what the debt ceiling is all about. for the president, you heard today, it's about paying your bill. going to a restaurant. picking up the tab for food you've already eaten. fine. >> very common sense, yes. >> very common sense. for republicans, it's about solving a problem. making a government that is too big, smaller and getting control of runaway spending on entitlements like social security and medicare and fixing a long-term problem. it's not just about paying the bills. it's about the future. >> right, but there are also a lot of political calculations in here. i assume they're very close to the political calculations we saw in the last crisis. >> yes, they are, although, you

know, in the last crisis it was very clear that the president had the let me rverage. he had just won the election. he had won an election over the tax issue and the republicans lost over the tax issue. they're pushing that so far off the table that i don't even hear them talking about tax reform anymore. the president is making a gamble here, that the public will see the republicans as irresponsible and absurd, as he called them, that you can't let the united states of america default, that's not who we are, and that the american public will be embarrassed by this fight. the republicans are making the calculation, you know what, the public is going to be on our side, because we have to get on a path of fiscal sustainability over the long term so they're going to be with us, they're going to want spending cuts. >> we've been measuring the political pressure on the speaker as it builds, it seems, to a big climax here. how much pressure is he in right now? >> huge amount of pressure.

don't forget, he didn't have a great time in the fiscal cliff fight. he couldn't bring a majority of his own caucus to vote for that final proposal. this time, his own caucus has put him on notice. a, don't you dare propose anything that doesn't have a majority of us on board to begin with. and, b, we want dollar for dollar parity. over dollar you raise on the debt limit, we want a dollar of spending cuts. that's a very difficult, almost impossible task. unless you get some kind of grand bargain. which, sense these two groups are talking past each other, it doesn't seem like that's a possibility. >> we'll see. it could end up affecting everybody's pocketbook. >> every piece of legislation on the table, gun control, immigration, if these people are angry, they're not going to get anything done. >> thank you so much, gloria borger, good to see you. >> thanks. just in to cnn.

some very dramatic poll numbers on how the american public feels about guns. they show broad support for tougher gun control measures. a just released pew poll shows 85% of americans favor background checks for private gun sales and sales at gun shows. only 12% are a, are opposed. a clear majority favor assault-style weapons. the polls shows only 40% favor an idea being pushed by the national rifle association. have more teachers and school officials carrying guns. on that topic, vice president joe biden met with house members and cabinet officials today. preparing to give the president his task force's recommendations on how to reduce gun violence. cnn white house correspondent dan lothian join us live now. dan. >> and the vice president ao met with the president today. they went other some proposals.

the president saying that later in the week, he'll be outlining some specifics about watt administration needs to do. there will be no doubt, some resistance to what the president will be offering. but the president says that he is not worried about the politics. president obama says he's already reviewing the vice president's recommendations aimed at tackling gun violence. while some may require congressional approval. >> how we are gathering data, for example, on guns that fall into the hands of criminals. and how we track that more effectively. there may be some steps that we can take administratively as opposed to through legislation. >> reporter: strong resistance to executive orders from some gun right advocates who fear their second amendment rights might be put at risk. vice president biden, meeting with everyone from gun rights groups to the entertainment industry, sat down with house democrats on a task force put together by house minority

leader pelosi. what's been promoted as a bipartisan effort has yet to include house republicans. this debate has spread from washington to state and local governments. maryland governor martin o'malley's putting together his own proposals to reduce violence. >> there is a sickness in our country. and that sickness is gun violence. >> reporter: new york mayor michael bloomberg, who joined o'malley and other leaders at a summit in baltimore, is putting pressure on the white house and congress. >> enough is enough. it's time for congress and the white house to put public health above special interest politics. >> reporter: the group he co-founded, i mayors against illegal guns, have released a new tv ad calling for gun control. >> enough. >> enough. >> enough. >> a line has been crossed. >> reporter: the nra says the focus should be on mental health issues and violent entertainment, not gun control. and the group's president raised doubts about an assault weapons ban getting through congress. >> you don't want to bet your

house on the outcome, but i would say that the likelihood is that they're not going to be able to get an assault weapons ban through this congress. >> reporter: it may be a steep climb, but it has the support of the president, some members of congress, and the police chief in newtown, connecticut. >> ban assault weapons, restrict those magazines that have so many bullets in them. >> reporter: now, as for the vice president not meeting with house republicans, a source familiar with the talks tells cnn that other members of congress will be brought into the process once they start exploring legislative options. >> dan lothian at the white house, thanks for that, dan. a quick programming note. this wednesday, be sure to watch a special gun control town hall on "anderson cooper 360." we'll break down all the issues. that's wednesday at 8:00 eastern, only on cnn. up next, lance armstrong says i'm sorry but he hasn't said i did it, at least not yet.

hear why we could hear him say those words soon. plus, tracking the flu with the smart phone. the new way you can find out who is infected and where they are. transitions® lenses automatically filter just the right amount of light. so you see everything the way it's meant to be seen. maybe even a little better. visit your eyecare professional today to ask about our newest lenses, transitions vantage and transitions xtractive lenses. experience life well lit. ask which transitions adaptive lens is best for you. we asked total strangers to watch it for us. thank you so much. i appreciate it. i'll be right back. they didn't take a dime. how much in fees does your bank take to watch your money? if your bank takes more money than a stranger,

you need an ally. ally bank. your money needs an ally.

getting a flu shot was one of the more popular activities you could engage in recently. that's a story we'll have a moment. first, a hint of what lance armstrong will tell oprah winfrey in his interview. the cyclist apologized to the staff at the live strong foundation today. this week, we'll find out if the one-time champion is ready to come clean about whether he doped his way to victory. our ed lavandera has more from

dallas. ed. >> reporter: hey, john, sorry about that. lance armstrong made a visit to the live strong foundation this afternoon. met with the staff there for about 15 to 20 minutes and apologized to them for everything that he's put them through, but stopped short of admitting he had used steroids. it's a script that would make a hollywood writer jealous. cycling athlete gets cancer, nearly dies, but heroically comes back to win the world's most historic race a record-breaking seven straight times. by the way, he also starts a cancer foundation which has raised $470 million. and has provided inspiration to millions around the world. but a dark cloud hovering over this story never blew past. suspicions that grew into allegations that lance armstrong used performance enhancing drugs to accomplish his incredible

feats. the suspicions were confirmed in october when the united states anti-doping agency released thousand, of pages of evidence of what it said was a sophisticated doping program. armstrong was stripped of his tour de france titles and banned from all olympic sports for life. one by one, his sponsors have left him too. late last year, armstrong was forced out from live strong, the cancer charity he founded. armstrong was kept a low profile at his austin home since the report was released. but armstrong's repeated denials other the years to protect his name have angered many. >> i've said it for seven years. i've said it for longer. i haver in doped. i can say it again. it doesn't help. >> reporter: former team mads found guilty of doping themselves went on record. >> did you see lance armstrong using other performance enhance drugs? >> at times, yeah, different training camps. >> he took what we all took. really no difference between lance armstrong and i'd say the

majority of the -- >> reporter: repercussions. so why is he doing this now? one reason could be hope a confession might give him a shot at resuming his competitive triathlon career, for which he is banned for life. at age 41, he doesn't have much time left to make a clean start in another sport. so that interview's probably taking place as we speak now, down there in austin, and it's scheduled to air thursday night on oprah winfrey's network. >> ed, give us some sense as to whether we think there is a legal problem for lance armstrong. >> reporter: well, he's still facing a lot of problems that are potential pitfalls out there. maybe they'll watch closely to what extend he confesses. what he confesses to. he's got sponsors who have paid

bonus money for winning the tour de france titles. some say they'll watch this closely to see if they'll sue to regain that money. there was also a newspaper that lance armstrong sued for libel. there are still plenty of issues out there the that armstrong faces. >> not to mention the questions of rehabilitating his image. thanks, ed lavandera. getting a flu shot was a popular activity this weekend. if you can find a flu shot. health officials insist there's no shortage. but demand has never been higher. cnn's mary snow joins me now with more. >> reporter: joe, this is just one small slice of the country, but new york is particularly seeing a surge in demand for vaccines because the governor issued a public health emergency for the state on saturday. now that order gives pharmacies more latitude in being able to administer shots. but it also means some pharmacies are now running short

on supply. this pharmacy in brooklyn has a sign telling people they give flu shots. inside, the best pharmacist could do was put people like david o'keefe on a waiting list. >> hopefully, we'll have flu shots for you tomorrow. i have 80 shots coming in. your number will be 76. >> reporter: the pharmacist ran out of vaccine on sunday after new york's governor declared a public health emergency over the weekend. the declaration gives farm sivts the ability to give children flu shots. in new york, they ordinarily can only give vaccines to people 18 and older. what was this weekend like? >> it was chaotic. a lot of people come in in panic. they want to get the whole family immunized. >> reporter: it wasn't much different at bigger chains like walgreens. >> it's been a little bit insane to be honest. as soon as the public emergency was declared, it was like the floodgates opened and everyone wanted their flu shot and they were coming in just in hordes looking to get it. >> reporter: this walgreens rethennished its supply this

morning. other chains also reported shortages at some its locations. and while there may be a shortage of flu vaccine in some places, there is no shortage of new yorkers taking to social media to write about their experiences. like this tweet. "this flu is brutal. not hungry, whole body aches, throat kills." some folks are capitalizing on disgruntled new yorkers expressing themselves through social media. one app developer is track the flu in six cities including new york. >> we have publicly available tweets, then we put them through our machine learning system. based on what they tweeted and where they have been. then plot them on the map. >> reporter: he says getting millions of tweets from new yorkers alone. the important thing is manufacturers have told cnn there are still many doses to be shipped out. if you're having trouble finding flu vaccines where you live, there are many different websites that can help you find it in your area. one that's set up by the

government is flu.gov, that's a good place to start. >> thanks so much, mary snow. it's a story you'll see first on cnn. sarah palin's reaction for the big golden globe wins for "game change," the movie about her vice presidential run. some day, your life will flash before your eyes. make it worth watching. introducing the 2013 lexus ls. an entirely new pursuit. overmany discounts to thine customers! [old english accent] safe driver, multi-car, paid in full -- a most fulsome bounty indeed, lord jamie. thou cometh and we thy saveth! what are you doing? we doth offer so many discounts, we have some to spare.

oh, you have any of those homeowners discounts? here we go. thank you. he took my shield, my lady. these are troubling times in the kingdom. more discounts than we knoweth what to do with. now that's progressive. officeyour business needs...k... at prices that keep you...out of the red. this week get a bonus $15 itunes gift card with any qualifying $75 ink purchase. find thousands of big deals now... at officemax. we don't let frequent heartburn come between us and what we love. so if you're one of them people who gets heartburn and then treats day after day... block the acid with prilosec otc and don't get heartburn in the first place! [ male announcer ] one pill each morning. 24 hours. zero heartburn. and don't get heartburn in the first place! for ovnights can feel califolong and lonely.dren, i miss my sister.

i miss my old school. i miss my room. i don't want special treatment. i just wanna feel normal. to help, sleep train is collecting pajamas for foster children, big and small. bring your gift to any sleep train, and help make a foster child's night a little cozier. not everyone can be a foster parent, but anyone can help a foster child. isurprise...it's eating less. to losing weight. i'm hungry just thinking about it. thank goodness for new slimful. one delicious, 90-calorie slimful and a glass of water, like before dinner, helps keep me satisfied for hours. so instead of this much, i only need this much. and slimful tastso good... i don't even miss dessert. slimful and a glass of water... eating less is a beautiful thing.

we know the identity of the 16-year-old accused opening fire at a high school in california last week. lisa sylvester's monitoring that and other top stories in "the situation room." >> the current county california d.a.'s office says he is 16-year-old brian oliver. the teen will be charged as an adult with two counts of attempted murder and two more of assault with a firearm. oliver accused of firing at two classmates, critically wounding one, missing the other. a teacher and another worker at taft high school in taft, california, are credited with talking oliver in surrendering. an adviser to former vice presidential candidate palin is slamming a movie that depicted her performance in the '08 campaign. the political drama "game change" won three golden globes

yesterday. the aide said, quote it comes as no surprise the hollywood foreign press recognized another hollywood group, hbo, for their work of fiction. the reality was an original american story, not a screenplay by people who only imagined events to fit their fiction. and in other news, cadillac has made history, winning its first car of the year award at the detroit auto show. it's the latest bright sign for general motors. the dodge ram won the truck the year award. it's the first time chrysler has won the honor in 13 years. ford was nominated in both categories but got shut out. and the day royal watchers are waiting for, that's going to come in july. that's when the duchess of cambridge is due to deliver a baby that could one day be crowned as britain's monarch. it can't come soon enough for the duchess. she's been suffering from acute morning sickness. although the palace says her

condition has improved since she was hospitalized last month. and of course we wish them all very well. i'm sure many of us will be look forward to july. >> absolutely, big month. did you watch the golden globes? >> i watched the second half of it. i saw some of the notable speev speeches. i was just cheering for ben affleck, so happy for him. >> real special moment for him. bill clinton surprise cameo appearance. >> i know, that was kind of nice. they like to sprinkle in, have a few surprises. so all good stuff, joe. >> thanks, lisa. if you got paid on friday, you already know, there's less money in your paycheck. suze orman joins me to explain why. plus two big names in both parties join forces to solve the gridlock in washington. aww man. [ male announcer ] returns are easy with free pickup from the u.s. postal service. we'll even drop off boxes if you need them. visit usps.com pay, print, and have it picked up for free.

any time of year. ♪ nice sweater. thank you. ♪ thank you. ♪ ♪ hi dad. many years from now, when the subaru is theirs... hey. you missed a spot. ...i'll look back on this day and laugh. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru.

back now to our big story. the standoff between president obama and congressional republicans over raising the nation's debt limit. in new york today, a bipartisan pair of political pros tried to put together a group of lawmakers who are committed to the seemingly radical idea of getting along and finding common ground to solve the nation's problems. democratic senator joe manchin and former republican presidential candidate jon huntsman called their partnership no labels. governor huntsman and senator manchin join me now. what's with the yellow ties, did you send out a memo today? >> we're working together across party lines. >> it's an auspicious color and

today's an auspicious day, joe, that's what it's all about. >> all right. so governor, or i should say senator manchin, you're also a former governor of west virginia, the president came out swinging today against republicans in his news conference. let's listen. >> and republicans in congress have two choices here. they can act responsibly and pay america's bills, or they can act irresponsibly and put america through another economic crisis. but they will not collect a ransom in exchange for not crashing the american economy. the financial well-being of the american people is not leveraged to be used. >> he's talking about bipartisan, but you would agree that he's also playing politics here or no? >> i'm not going to second-guess what the president, his motives and everything. i can tell you, there's a lot of democrats who believe we need to cut spending also. and we need to get our house

financially in order. with that, we're hoping it happens sooner than later. i've always been for the bowles/simpson approach, which was a big fix, so we don't go through these crises every two or three months. it's ridiculous. we've kicked the can so much, there's nothing left. we've got to come to grips and sit down and work through this. it's taken longer than needed. that's why congress -- it's really broken in washington. it's really what no labels and why jon and i are here. we're looking for solutions and a venue that we can sit down and work out our differences. and this is the one i think works well. >> jon huntsman, we're already hearing this discussion about raising the debt ceiling. from your position as a republican, do you think it's appropriate for house republicans led by speaker boehner to threaten not raising the debt ceiling? >> well, members of congress should be doing what's best for the economy. because that's, then, best for the american people. no labels is about creating a

group of problem solvers in congress. whether it's the debt ceiling, joe, whether it's energy, whether it's immigration, whether it's tax reform. what congress lacks today and what we today rolled out, at least in part, is a group of congressional problem solvers. republicans and democrats alike. who will agree going forward. and, by the way, our goal by the end of the year is to get this group of problem solvers up to 75 or 80. you can imagine republicans and democrats alike, 75 or 80 people in a room, talking about the possible. talking about problem solving. on the key issues of the day. that's the way we're going to make progress. and keep from becoming exactly what the 112 congress was, the most unproductive congress in the history of the united states. >> excuse me, governor, is it a good idea for the republicans to push a default of the u.s. on paying its bills? >> well, i think we ought to let our credit rating probably drive

this whole discussion. because when we jeopardize our credit rating, i found as a governor, we had a aaa rated state. joe knows everything there is to know about credit ratings. then every american is affected. the cost of capitalism impacted. our international competitiveness is impacted. that's not an answer. that's not a solution. >> you both seem to be saying congress needs to come together and do a bit more compromise. but if you talk to democrats on the left, republicans on the right, including tea parties, of course, they say compromise is part of what's wrong with washington. that there's too much dealmaking. how do you address that? >> joe, think about it. we have not had in two years, we have not had an organized meeting, a bipartisan by senators, democrats and republicans, to talk over the things you assume we're talking about. you know, we had the fiscal cliff. and it was all about raising revenues. we weren't going to do anything. and it took really going over the cliff a few hours to get it

fixed. now we're saying, okay, it's time to cut the expenses. talking, well, we're going to go into default for that. it's ridiculous to have this nonfunctional, dysfunctional working relationship in congress. i don't understand it. >> what we have forgotten, joe, is the art of the deal. what we've forgotten how to do is what joe did as a governor, what i did as a governor. bringing in people of disparate political backgrounds and doing the work of the people. because if you don't get the work of the people done, which is exactly where we sit today, then you find the dysfunction of congress makes your own country dysfunctional. and it begins to discolor and distort your very economy. sadly enough, that's where we're headed. >> do you all agree that the extremes on both parties, the right and left, are actually the ones who run the congress right now? start with you, senator. >> there's quite a bit of extremism. i don't need to tell you that, joe. there's very few of us left in the middle. the so-called middle, if you will, has been sh ink aring,

shrinking and shrinking. let's talk about follow the money. a lot of the people are on the far left or far right of the extremes of both ends. that's where people get all excited, get involved. either directly or their resources, their money behind in what they believe in. sometimes it draws them further apart. tom brokaw basically says that 75% of all of our congressional districts are bulletproof. so if you're there, and you've already established yourself, whether you're on the right or left, you're pretty well solid. so you only have to play to a certain core. and that's not healthy. and so a lot of changes need to be made to make congress work again. first would be maybe we should work five days and get to know each other a little bit better. >> all right. well, that is another argument for another day about how congressional districts are configured. >> right. >> i want to thank you, senator manchin, governor huntsman, for talking to us today. >> thank you, joe. speaking of the economy, is it the right time to buy a

house? personal finance expert suze orman joins me with an answer you will want to hear. not their short-term agenda. [ male announcer ] join the nearly 7 million investors who think like you do. face time and think time make a difference. at edward jones, it's how we make sense of investing.

we're already two weeks into the new year. by now, you've probably gotten a

paycheck that's noticeably smaller than last year's. one big reason is because of something that was intentionally left out the fiscal cliff fight. an increase in the payroll tax that funds social security. look for your paycheck stub and find the line that says "fica." fica which, by the way, stands for federal insurance contributions act. the amount being deducted went up starting january 1st. joining me now is suze orman, the host of cnbc's "suze orman show." thank you for joining us. break this down for us. what is this payroll tax and why are they taking more of it out of people's paychecks? >> well, they're taking more out of people's paychecks because they're taking away something, it seems, that we didn't have.

if that makes any sense. so we used to pay payroll tax to fund our deficits and then, because the economy was so horrible, they gave us a break on it of 2%. now, they're just adding that back in, because they need money. so we're just paying more taxes. everybody's paying more taxes in order to pay the bills that we don't have the money to pay. it's really just as simple as that. >> it's probably a little confusing for some people because when they were listening to the budget negotiations at the end of the year, people were telling us, well, the only people who are going to get a tax increase are people making more than $400,000. it turns out this goes from 4.2 to 6.2. who is that going to affect? >> it's going to affect absolutely every single person. the person it's really going to hurt are the people that are making $50,000 a year and all a sudden that's an extra $1,000 in taxes to them. believe it or not, that extra $100 or so a month really makes a difference between can they go

out to eat, can they not. it really matters to them. so in many circumstances, in most circumstances actually, the people that are always hurt are the people that don't have enough money. >> right. so that's the question, is that the only hit people are going to take in their tax in 2013 as far as you can see or are there some other surprises? >> we'll have to see if there are some other surprises. but it's not just for those -- and people need to be very clear about this. you know, everybody now has touted this figure of $400,000 if you're single, $450,000 if you're a couple. many, many people get dividend checks. many people own stock or own property that, very possibly, they may sell, and the capital gains tax is going to change for people who have an income of -- adjusted gross income of $200,000 and $250,000, if they're a couple. they're going to add that extra 3.8% on. so it's not going to be 15%.

it's going to be 18.8%. now, that could affect a lot of people, believe it or not. so i know that it sounds like a lot, that people are making $200,000 and blah, blah, blah, blah, who cares. in new york, in san francisco, in l.a. it's a big deal. so it could affect more people than you could imagine that it was going to affect. >> and certainly creating an amount of uncertainty, if you will. just today president obama was talking about what could happen if congress doesn't agree to let the government essentially pay its bills. let's listen. >> america cannot afford another debate with this congress about whether or not they should pay the bills they've already racked up. if congressional republicans refused to pay america's bills on time, social security checks and veterans benefits will be delayed. >> so the truth is the president and the congress actually have to agree on all of this to end up getting a deal.

but the question for you, suze, is what are americans supposed to do during a time of uncertainty? for example, if you're thinking about making a big purchase, should you do it now or wait till the president and the congress figures it out? >> the time has come, in my opinion that americans realize that their future cannot be in the hands of politicians. that their financial future has to be held tightly right within their own grips. and if they don't have the money to buy something outright, if they have to put it on a credit card and pay the minimum payment due, if they aren't funding their retirement accounts fully or have an eight-month emergency fund or whatever it may be, this is not the time to be spending money you don't have to impress people you don't even know or like. this is the time when you have to keep yourself out of poverty. you have to prepare for the what ifs. you cannot get yourself in a

situation where you think that the government is going to say to you -- because they cannot even save themselves anymore. so no, unless you are flush financially speaking, this is not the time for you to spend money on something big. unless you can write a check and not even notice that the money is missing. >> but that sets up another question. if your choice is between paying off all your bills or say, fully funding your 401k, which would you advise people to do? >> if they have a 401k which matches their contribution, which means you put in a dollar and they give you 50 cents, that is free money. they cannot afford to pass that up. however, after the point of the match where the corporation no longer gives you that 50 cents and/or if your corporation does not match at all, you are better off paying off your bills than putting money in a retirement account. but here's the truth, why does it have to be all or nothing?

why can't you put some money away for retirement and pay, put some of that money towards bills? what would be great is if you could do both. >> after the real estate bubble burst, there were a lot of people waiting to sell their houses. is this the time now you can sell your house? or do you think given all the uncertainty with the government, the economy, people ought to continue to wait? >> well, if you nd to sell your house, and there's different types of people out there. there are those people that owe more money than their house is worth. and they are thinking they better wait and see if it will come up. don't wait. you shouldn't wait any longer. because we got a one-year reprieve. which means if you have to do a foreclosure or a short sale, it was supposed to be as of january 1st of this year, you would owe taxes on the difference between what you sold the house for and what you owed the bank or what it was foreclosed upon for and what you owed the bank. starting next year, they have

postponed that, starting next year you will owe taxes on that difference. if you're underwater on your home, you know you're not going to keep it, this is the year to absolutely sell it. if you want to buy a house, let's talk about that, is this a good year to buy a home? is absolutely is. especially if you have at least 20% down, you can afford at least a 15 to 30-year fixed rate mortgage, you can afford the property tax, the insurance and maintenance and your job is secure, go ahead and buy, people, go and buy. this is the year to do so. >> u.s. is asuze orman, it's alt to talk to you. best of luck to you in the coming year. >> thank you, see you soon. president obama's second inaugural is just one week away. this time next monday, we should be wrapping up the inaugural parade. there are big changes in store from what happened four years ago. hello? hello?! if your bank doesn't let you talk to a real person 24/7, you need an ally.

hello? ally bank. your money needs an ally. ♪ [ male announcer ] some day, your life will flash before your eyes. make it worth watching. introducing the 2013 lexus ls. an entirely new pursuit.

here's a look at this hour's hot shots. in japan, troops participate in a military drill. in australo, a woman walks her dog on a snowy day. in china, police barricade a residence where migrant workers protest. and in india, the sun sets over a mosque in mumbai. hot shots, pictures coming in from around the world. for the first time in decades, people in cuba can now

travel to other countries without special papers. under new rules that start today, most cubans only need a passport and they can stay abroad for a lot longer. cnn's patrick ot mon joins me from havana with more. will you explain these changes and what it means for everyday cubans? >> reporter: joe, as you probably can guess, there's no shortage of red tape or bureaucracy here in cuba. it seems some days there is a constant struggle to get anything done. and there's perhaps no more hated restriction than the restriction that kept people from traveling freely. in fact, it was something that even people who supported the revolution here really detested. starting today, joe, people only need a passport. many of those restrictions have gone away. we're seeing people all around havana lining up sometimes around the block to get those passports. that doesn't mean it's going to

be easier, it's only going to be a little bit easier to travel. most people here will still need visas to go to many countries like the united states. and of course traveling is very, very expensive, beyond the means of many, many cubans. the government has said not everyone is going to be able to take advantage of opening this quite significant opening. and that means that military officials who perhaps possess some secret ninformation, sport stars who can make untold amounts more than they make here in cuba, they won't be able to travel in this fashion. they'll have to go through a different process. we're still waiting to see if government critics who over the years haven't been able to travel freely, if this new opening will apply to them. all the same, joe, people here in cuba are enthusiastic about the idea that they could be reunited with family members. many they haven't seen in decades, joe. >> put it in context for us, though. how much do cubans actually

make, the household income? >> the average person here makes less than $20 a month. that's something of a false statistic because there's so many cubans who help cubans here sending money back via western union, which is now legal. and so it's something of a parallel economy. as well, many cubans perhaps have a job on the side. but in terms of just that state income, there's no way that anybody could ever earn enough to afford a very expensive plane ticket. people here, joe, always manage to find a way and already we're seeing signs that people are planning to take advantage of this opening and people very excited to travel, however they can pull that off. >> thanks, patrick oppman in cuba. coming up in our next hour, your flu questions answered by the cdc. nurses are dealing with a wider range of issues. and there are ever-changing regulations. when you see these challenges, do you want to back away or take charge?

with a degree in the field of healthcare or nursing from capella university, you'll have the knowledge to advance your career while making a difference in the lives of patients. let's get started at capella.edu. it's lots of things. all waking up. connecting to the global phenomenon we call the internet of everything. ♪ it's going to be amazing. and exciting. and maybe, most remarkably, not that far away. we're going to wake the world up. and watch, with eyes wide, as it gets to work. cisco. tomorrow starts here. is a fantastic experience. 30 shrimp for $11.99. i can't imagine anything better. you're getting a ton of shrimp, and it tastes really good! [ male announcer ] hurry in to red lobster's 30 shrimp for just $11.99! choose any two of five savory shrimp selections,

like mango jalapeño shrimp and parmesan crunch shrimp. two delicious shrimp selections on one plate! all with salad and unlimited cheddar bay biscuits. 30 shrimp, just $11.99 for a limited time. wow, that's a lot of shrimp. i'm ryon stewart, i'm the ultimate shrimp lover, and i sea food differently. woman: what do you mean, homeowners insurance doesn't cover floods? [ heart rate increases ] man: a few inches of water caused all this? [ heart rate increases ]

woman #2: but i don't even live near the water. what you don't know about flood insurance may shock you -- including the fact that a preferred risk policy starts as low as $129 a year. for an agent, call the number that appears on your screen. taking a live look at the western or the national mall side of the united states capital, for those of you in washington, d.c., where in exactly one week president obama's formal inauguration ceremony will take place. they rehearsed it over the weekend, complete withstand-ins

for the president and chief justice john roberts. monday's swearing-in ceremony is just part of the pageantry. there's parades, concerts and, of course, huge crowds. cnn's brian todd join us live from the national mall with an update on all the preparations. exciting time, brian. >> reporter: well, joe, it's all coming together here, less than a week out. saw the shot you mentioned. that's the west front of the capital where the president's rise to the podium is being assembled. hundreds of seats up there for vips. speakers are set up along the reflecting pool. jumbotrons will come up soon. possibly the most crucial part of the whole setup, thousand, of po port-o-johns. you can't stage an event like this without those. this event may not be the same scale as four years ago but has every bit the symbolism and the importance. this year, it will be scaled

down. if you call about 900,000 people scaled down. officials say for president obama's second inauguration, washington's national mall will have about half as many people as it did in 2009. but it's still a huge undertaking. millions watching on tv. washington, a buzz with ceremony, symbolism, that big event feeling. what's crucial to know? >> if you're bringing kids, take their picture on your cell phone. put your phone number, pin it to your coat. that's one of the big things, you know, we want to make sure that kids who come here are safe, that they have a good time. >> reporter: how much of a problem has that been? a lot of kids get lost? >> no, i wouldn't say a lot of kids get lost but we want to absolutely avoid that. >> reporter: about 250,000 people have coveted tickets for areas close to the president's platform. four years ago, many who had those tickets walked away angry. thousands never got past the security entrances on the periphery of the mall. >> one of the main reasons there

was such holdups four years ago, number one reason was the huge amount of people, a record. but the number two reason was that people went to the wrong gates. they had to wait on line forever and then be told you got to go somewhere else. >> reporter: hundreds of confused ticket holders got stuck in washington's third straight tunnel and never saw the inauguration. but this year the third straight tunnel's going to be closed for the inauguration and organizers have come up with a special app for ticket holders. the app has a map showing your current location. then you just touch the color of your ticket and it will show you where the closest entrances are corresponding to the color of your ticket. as always, law enforcement agencies from the secret service to the d.c. police, park and capitol police, will handle security. they'll close streets, air and water traffic will be restricted. this year's preparations have been replete with rehearsals. withsta stand-ins playing the president, the chief. the real president will have two swearing-ins. a public ceremony and a private

one. he'll use two bibles. one owned by abraham lincoln. the other owned by martin luther king jr. >> use the opportunity to see our monuments, memorials. this is part of the american story. >> reporter: now, park service is advising people who come to the mall, that when a swearing-in is over, when the parade is over, don't rush off mall all at once. take a stroll. go to a monument or two. become a tourist. big reason for that is because they don't want a lot of people crushing into d.c.'s metro rail system all at once, joe, they want to avoid those bottlenecks there. only a couple of metro stops around here. if everybody goes all at once, that's going to be kind of a nightmare. >> do we have any idea how much this is going to cost? >> reporter: in the hundreds of millions. and the big question is, you know who is going to pay for all this. much of the money raised for these events is from private donors. they pay for the inaugural, some of the equipment set up here.

four years ago, president obama raised around $50 million for his inauguration then. so a lot of it will be from private donors. public money goes to the security arrangements. >> brian todd on the mall, thanks. if you can't make it down to the mall, cnn's going to have it all right here on tv. our coverage of president obama's second inaugural spans two days. first, the official oath of office and a private ceremony. then monday's public ceremony at the u.s. capitol. be sure to watch the presidential inauguration starting at 9:00 a.m. eastern sunday and monday right here on cnn. you're in "the situation room." happening now -- as the president weighs tough proposals to curb gun violence, why are many gun owners fearful he wants to take their weapons away? as the flu spreads, so does the fear. in many places, the vaccine is now hard to come by. as thousands rush to get their shots. and they're up to 20 feet long,

among the world's largest snakes they've envaded florida by the tens of thousands. now, the hunt is on. welcome to our seers in the united states and around the world. wolf blitzer is off tonight. you're in "the situation room." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com president obama today made it a public stare-down with house republicans over raising the debt ceiling. and neither side is about to blink. gop leaders seemed ready to let america default on its loans and let the government grind to a halt, unless democrats agree to big spending cuts. but the president says that's a false equation. >> raising the debt ceiling does not authorize us to spend more.

all it does is say that america will pay its bills. and we are not a deadbeat nation. >> let's go live to cnn senior congressional correspondent dana bash. i want to play a little bit more of the president's warning to republicans in congress on the debt ceiling. listen to this. >> they will not collect a ransom in exchange for not crashing the american economy. the financial well being of the american people is not leveraged to be used. the full faith and credit of the united states of america is not a bargaining chip. and they better choose quickly, because time is running short. >> when you hear that, the president clearly says he's not budging, but is there any sense of there from the congressional perspective? what about congressional republicans? do they have any intention of backing down in what seems to be yet another staring contest? >> reporter: kate, they say the answer is no.

in fact, even before the president came out today, we were already hearing from republican leadership aides in the house telegraphing that they time they really mean it. meaning as opposed to a year and a half ago, where they really -- at least the house speaker and most members the leadership and even rank and file were not willing to go to the point where they are willing to default on the u.s. debt. this time, they are, in fact, they are saying that they really mean that they're not going to go do anything without matching dollar for dollar spending cuts with the debt limit. and here's what the speaker himself said in a statement right after the president was done with his press conference. without meaningful action, the debt will continue to act as an anchor on our economy, costing american jobs and endangering our children's future. the house will do its job and pass responsible legislation that controls spending, meets our nation's obligations and keeps the government running. and we will insist that the democratic majority in washington do the same. the translation here is that the house majority of republicans, they do plan to push

legislation, to have those spending cuts, that they're culling for. but the question of course is what happens when, i don't even think we should say "if," when the senate doesn't follow suit? as i said, they were telegraphing this morning they are willing to take it to the nth degree and to keeping the president's analogy of hostages and holding a gun to their head, shoot the hostage, but, you know, when we get to that point, the question is whether or not they really do mean it, because as you know, kate, the house speaker has been making clear, at least in private, that he doesn't think that really is a good idea, that they don't really have the leverage that they think they do, but he's always got a lot of pressure on him, to really have a hard line when it comes to this issue. >> as we've seen in many fights in the past, it's hard for him to force whatever -- even if it is his will, it's hard for him to impart his will on his conference. so there's clearly so much distrust on both sued s distrust on both suedides when comes to any negotiation between

the white house and congress. how much is pent-up frustration among house republicans driving the showdown this time? >> a lot. in particular, look at what happened on new year's day with the house vote on the fiscal cliff package. only 85p ares voted for it. only 85 republicans voted for it. most voted against it. politically, when it comes to the frustration focused on the house speaker, many were willing to give him a pass. you saw some protest votes on the day of the new congress against him. but most were willing to give him a pass because they saw the big fight as this one, the debt ceiling and after that, of course, on the government shutdown. right now, there really is a tight rope the speaker is walking between, as you said, making clear that he is fighting for what they want, those spending cuts, but also understanding that if the u.s. does default, the credit of the united states will be a problem, and that's why the president made clear today he knows he's got the bully pulpit to try to put the blame back on the house republicans even before this

fight really starts in earnest. >> no matter who thinks they're in the right on this one, there are real consequences if they don't make a deal. dana bash on capitol hill. it's just starting all over again. thanks, dana. exactly one month ago, the horrifying massacre of schoolchildren in connecticut rekindled the national debate over gun violence and a fresh effort to try to do something about it. vice president biden is soon going to announce new proposals by his federal task force and president obama is already checking him out. >> what you can count on is that -- the things i've said in the past, the belief that we have to have stronger background checks. that we can do a much better job in terms of keeping these magazine clips with high capacity out of the hands of folks who shouldn't have them. an assault weapons ban that is meaningful. that those are things i continue to believe make sense. >> but why is it so many gun

owners fear the obama administration is coming for their guns? cnn national political correspondent jim acosta has been looking into that. and this is something that has spanned the obama administration. you hear from so many gun owners who say, he's going to take our guns away. he says no. >> we've been hearing this for year, joe. you've been to these gun stores, i've been to these gun stores. the president addressed this fear today in his news conference and he accused the gun industry of trying to exploit it. take a look inside any firearms shop these days and it's clear nothing sells guns like the fear of gun control. >> every time the president or senator feinstein comes out and talks about restricting second amendment rights of u.s. citizens, the phone rings off the hooshk, the line goes out t door. gun sales skyrocket. >> reporter: just outside the nation's capital in virginia, the ar-15 assault-style rifle is not the only item hard to keep in stock. high capacity magazines are selling fast too. the store's website warns

customers last chance, due to uncertainty of obama's potential unilateral ar restrictions, this is the last batch of ars we will get in. the salesman says it might surprise people to know who his customers are. >> 40% are females and senior citizens. >> reporter: senior citizens? they're buying assault rifles? >> absolutely. they're very easy for them to operate. >> reporter: last december, the national shooting sports foundation says gun background checks surged nearly 59% over the same month in 2011. at a news conference, president accused the weapons industry of exploiting gun owner fears to whip up sales. >> there's probably an economic element to that. it obviously's good for business. >> reporter: an administration official tells cnn vice president joe biden's task force is expected to recommend a new ban on assault weapons. a limit on high capacity magazines. and universal background checks on buyers. but the president cautions that's not the same as taking citizen's guns away.

>> even the slightest hint of some sensible responsible legislation in this area, fans this notion that somehow, here it comes, and that everybody's guns are going to taken away. >> reporter: pro-gun groups and conservative websites also fear what's coming up. up on the michigan militia website is the warning, we will oppose all attempts to disarm law abiding citizen citizens. the national rifle association tweeted out a warning from a conservative columnist who said the obama administration would confiscate weapons if it could. >> i think if obama had his way and he could somehow put enough people on streets and do this and go door to door and somehow even, you know, get around the search and seizure laws and go into our houses, yes, i believe he believes that the only people who should have guns are the military and the police. >> reporter: president obama said he would outline some of his gun proposals, including

some by executive order later this week. that potential for an executive order has one member of congress, republican steve stockman of texas, threatening to begin impeachment proceedings. here is his news release right here. it says, come and actake it, an it appears to have what looks like a cannon there in the press release, so this could get very, very tense up on capitol hill. >> there are just no illusions in the administration that whatever they do on gun control is going to create a huge fight. >> that's right. i think it's really up in the air as to whether or not this passes. one senator could block this obviously in the senate with a filibuster, in the same way that the fiscal cliff fight tested the power of grover norquist, this will test the organization, we'll find out if they're as effective as it once was. >> one place where the gun debate hits home is newtown,

connecticut. it's the one-month anniversary of the shooting tragedy at sandy hook elementary. families of some victims today unveiled a campaign to prevent it from ever happening again. david wheeler lost his son benjamin. listen. >> i would respectfully request that every parent in this country who hears these words simply pause for a moment and think. ask yourself, what is it worth doing to keep your children safe? what is it worth to you? what is it worth doing? what is worth doing? >> let's go live to cnn's national correspondent susan candiotti in news town. you've been following this from the beginning. you were there to hear these heartbreaking statements and also spend some time with parents of one of the victims. what were your impressions?

>> reporter: you know, it was very painful to listen to these families, families who lost their children. 6-year-old boys and girls who lost teachers, who lost staff. and this is the first time we saw so many of them together, holding photographs of their loved ones. some of them were silent. but after the press conference, ian and nicole, who lost one of their two precious sons, dylan, spoke with me about how loved he was. please tell us a bit about dylan. >> go ahead. >> dylan was just a real joy. he was autistic but incredibly empathetic. he was always smiling and happy. and people always remember him smiling and happy. >> the things we used to do together, i would get home from work and i'd come in the house and he'd just run up and just go

"daddy!" >> it's a strange moment when you wake up in the morning and for that brief second everything is as it was. and then you realize that nothing is ever as it was and never will be again. >> reporter: can you please tell us about your understanding of what happened that day? we understand that, in part, his teacher tried to protect him. >> she had been found with her arms wrapped around dylan. and that was what we had hoped for. that gives you a huge peace of mind, to know that he was loved even in those last moments. >> reporter: what do you want sandy hook promise to accomplish? >> we want to be part of a proper intelligent conversation and come up with recommendations to actions and push actions. >> reporter: why do you think things might be different this time? >> it's different because it's the children. it's inhumane what happened to

them. >> this is unthinkable. >> reporter: any final thoughts you wish to share about dylan? >> i wish this had never happeneded in so many respects. and i wish that everyone would have a chance to get to know him better. because i think he could have brought a lot more joy to many other people. but it's our duty now to honor him. >> reporter: taking a look here, again, of the picture of little dylan hockley, 6 years old, who died in that massacre. susan, his parents say they want to be part of an intelligence conversation about gun control. so what is their message now? what are they hoping their son's legacy will be? >> reporter: well, you know, they haven't made any final decisions about what they want to come out of this, except they want things to change. they are setting up a foundation in their sons names in order to help other autistic children.

kate. >> susan candiotti, in newtown, connecticut, thank you so much, susan. one month later, it's so difficult to discuss. that goes without saying. >> so hard for those families. >> so hard. as vice president biden leads the effort for new gun control proposal, his son has been doing the same thing in their home state. i'll speak to general attorney general bow ed biden. and disgraced cyclist lance armstrong today tearfully apologized to his charity. [ nurse ] i'm a hospice nurse.

britta olsen is my patient. i spend long hours with her checking her heart rate, administering her medication, and just making her comfortable. one night britta told me about a tradition in denmark, "when a person dies," she said, "someone must open the window so the soul can depart." i smiled and squeezed her hand. "not tonight, britta. not tonight." [ female announcer ] to nurses everywhere, thank you, from johnson & johnson.

the death total from this season's powerful strain of the flu virus continues to rise. the government reports 20 children under the age of 18 have died from flu-related symptoms and data from some states suggest dozens of adults have died as well. all but three states, california, hawaii and mississippi, report widespread flu activity. >> the flu may be peaking early but it's definitely not too late to get a flu shot. that's the message from the director of the centers for disease control and prevention. who's standing by live to take your flu questions in just a

minute. but first, we go to cnn senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen in new york, where the demand for the vaccine is so high, people are on a waiting list to get a shot. elizabeth. >> kate, joe, there are shortages of vaccine in various parts of the country. but we're hearing it's especially bad in new york. and it may be because the governor declared this public health emergency, so people are rushing to get their shots, which is good, but sometimes they're not finding them. for example, this urgent care center stayed open over the weekend but actually ran out of shots. they just got a shipment this morning at 11:30. the staff immediately got on the phone, called people on the wait list, saying, come in, get your shot. people were glad to see them. a lot of people have been looking all over for a flu vaccination. >> i looked at one place and they were out. >> i tried three dwayne reeds and one cvs and then came to the urgent care. >> reporter: as part of the public health emergency,

governor cuomo gave pharmacists special permission to vaccinate minors. usually, they're not allowed to do that. but there seems to have been a little catch here. both cvs and duane reed, big chains in new york city, said they're not going to vaccinate minors even though they're allowed to. they said, look, there are some procedural things that need to be ironed out in connection with giving them permission. they felt like they weren't quite resolved. plus, some pharmacies are having trouble getting the pediatric form of the shot. that's the kind that's given to children under the age of 3. the centers for disease control says even though this has been a tough season so far, they feel like we're perhaps beginning to turn the corner. they point out this data, they say there are now 24 states that have high levels of flu activity, whereas, in their last report, just the week before, there were 29 states. it seems to be getting better, especially in certain parts of the southeast. kate, joe. >> elizabeth, thanks so much.

joining us now live is the director of the centers for disease control and prevention dr. thomas freeden. you are a busy man. we thank you for coming in. today, i think the real question standing right now is when do we know that the worst has passed, or when this flu season has peaked? where are your areas of concern right now? >> well, most flu seasons last about 12 weeks and we're coming up to about halfway through that time. but we won't know till the next couple of weeks what the trend is. we had a small downturn last week, predominantly in the southeast. but sometimes we see that kind of a downturn in holiday weeks. so with this week, we'll know more. the following week, more still. we track this 24/7 to see where flu is spreading and to let people know what we can do about it. >> we know the numbers it has reached, epidemic levels in many places. is there one area of real concern to the cdc right now? >> it's not so much a geographic

area. it's more what population groups. so very young kids. older people. and people with underlying health conditions are more susceptible to severe illness with flu. so if you or someone you know or in your family is in one of those three groups and you get cough, fever and symptoms of flu, which often come on quite suddenly, it's important to see a doctor or other health care provider. because rapid treatment in the first 48 hours after you get sick can really make a big difference. >> you know this better than most. so many families and parents, everyone has many questions about this flu season. we reached out to our viewers on twitter and facebook to ask then what questions they have for you and we wanted to bring you some of those. on twitter, asked this, why are we out of vaccines in so many locations? i mean, we're hearing about vaccinations shortages in certain places. is it simply a problem of demand? >> what we're seeing is spot

shortages in some areas. they pop up and then be addressed. overall, there is still vaccine out there. people may need to call around or check with different pharmacies. additional vaccine is being made available through the companies that manufacture it. but we are seeing some spot shortages. unfortunately what happens, when we tell people, get vaccinated, not too many people do. then when there's a lot of flu, there's a lot of interest. the best way to increase interest in vaccination is for people to hear there might be a shortage of vaccine. >> there's also some questions about how well it works. musab on twitter asks, is the typical flu vaccine reliable enough? >> the flu vaccine is far from perfect but it's, by far, the best thing we have to protect you from the flu. it has about a 62% effect imness at reducing the likelihood that if you get it, you'll need to go

to your doctor because you're sick with flu. that also means you're much less likely to spread it to your family and friends. so it's not where we'd like ton see a vaccine. childhood vaccines are well up over 90% in terms of their effectiveness. we're working on better vaccines with companies and parts of the federal government. but it's still by far the best tool we've got. and it's completely without risk of getting the flu. you can't get the flu from the flu vaccine. and you do need this year's flu vaccine to protect you from this year's flu. >> we have a question on facebook. this is from lodi, who writes, i took my flu shot in september 2012 but got sick this week. does the flu shot really work or perhaps the other question is how long does it work? >> well, the flu shot does work but it's not fool proof. so first off, if you're sick, it may not be from flu. there are lots of illnesses going around, lots of colds. it's not just flu season, it's cold season. there are some other syndromes

going around. diarrheal outbreaks we're seeing. just because you're sick doesn't mean it's flu. that's why, if you're somewhere or know someone very young, older, underlying health condition, if you're very ill, please go see your doctor promptly. >> and get your flu shot. that continues to be the message. dr. thomas frieden, thank you, director of the centers for disease control and prevention, thank you very much, doctor. >> thank you. up next, lance armstrong says i'm sorry but he hasn't said i did it. if there was a pill to help protect your eye health as you age... would you take it? well, there is. [ male announcer ] it's called ocuvite. a vitamin totally dedicated to your eyes, from the eye care experts at bausch + lomb. as you age, eyes can lose vital nutrients. ocuvite helps replenish key eye nutrients. ocuvite has a unique formula not found in your multivitamin

to help protect your eye health. now that's a pill worth taking. [ male announcer ] ocuvite. help protect your eye health. [ male announcer ] ocuvite. excuse me, sir i'm gonna have to ask you to power down your little word game. i think your friends will understand. oh no, it's actually my geico app...see? ...i just uh paid my bill. did you really? from the plane? yeah, i can manage my policy, get roadside assistance, pretty much access geico 24/7. sounds a little too good to be true sir. i'll believe that when pigs fly.

ok, did she seriously just say that? geico. just click away with our free mobile app.

lance armstrong's publicist says he apologized to the cancer charity he started. >> he's sitting down with oprah winfrey today where we expect he'll discuss allegations of doping. joining us now is cnn's lisa sylvester. she's been looking at

armstrong's long history of denial. >> so many developments here. lance armstrong's apology to his staff of the cancer fighting charity live strong is telling. that is ahead of an interview with oprah winfrey. we don't know what he's going to say or might have even said at this point. apparently everything is on the table. lance armstrong was tested more than 200 times by the international cycling union and the u.s. anti-doping agency for alleged use of performance enhancing drug. he vehemently denied using any banned substances to give him a competitive edge. including this 2005 testimony under oath at a deposition obtained by cnn. it involved a case brought by a dallas insurance company that had shelled out huge bonuses for armstrong's tour de france wins. >> you've never used your own blood for doping purposes, for example? >> absolute -- that would be banned. >> okay. i'm not trying to agitate you. i'm just trying to make sure your testimony's clear, okay,

all right. >> okay. >> deny, deny, deny. armstrong has consistently maintained he did not wrong. but the u.s. anti-doping agency put out a 202-page report in october, detailing otherwise. but now armstrong is sitting down with oprah winfrey, according to media reports, it will include a confession. if the allegations are true, it would be a mind-boggling fall from grace for the man dubbed the greatest cyclist in history. >> armstrong hasn't just denied doping, he's vehemently denied doping. it's not as if he just said, i didn't dope, next question. he has gone after the people that have suspected him or accused him and he's made their lives very, very difficult. and he's really built this culture of fear. where he's really discouraged anybody from going after him. >> reporter: that includes that dallas insurance company that will want its bonus money back. >> sca is going to claim he probably still has the 7.5 million that they paid him and

they're going to be looking for that back. so the question's going to come up, do they now have a right to reopen that case if lance armstrong lied back at the arbitration? >> especially on cycling magazines. i mean, he'd be on every other month's cycling cover. >> reporter: this is a manager at a maryland bike store. he says cheating has been wide spread in the sport. i asked him why. is it all about the money then? >> i think it's about staying in the game. maybe they're getting paid well and when you do win, you do get paid really well, but for a lot of those guys, they just want to stay sponsored so they can keep racing. >> reporter: and if it turns out that armstrong lied at that deposition, well, he could normally face perjury charges, but the statute of limitations has run out. but there certainly are a lot of other legal headaches. there is for example "the britain sun times" who paid him for a libel case. there's the insurance company we

mentioned that paid out his bonuses. and a whistle blower federal lawsuit brought by a former teammate. so again, we don't know what he's going to say. we don't know if it's a confession. but that interview airs this thursday. i'm sure a lot of people are going to be watching that oprah winfrey interview. >> think about rehabilitating his image. this could go on for years. >> it may take years and years. think of how many years and years he's been denying that he's done anything wrong. >> and a big question is why. of all the times, why would he come out now? a lot of people think it's because of live strong. ever since you had that report that came out, that really damaging report that came out in october of '02 by the anti-doping agency, his charity has really taken a hit. so some people believe the reason why he's coming forward or possibly could come forward, because, again, we don't know what he could say, is that if he sets the record straight, if he answers all these questions once and for all, maybe he can move this chapter, maybe it's a first step, he can move on and the

charity can survive. >> leave it up to the lawyers. >> you're absolutely right, let the lawyers have this one now. >> lisa, thank you. >> thanks, lisa. his father is spearheading the administration's effort to curb gun violence. delaware attorney general biden is playing a similar role in their home state. he join us next. aner, we replaced people with a machine. what? customers didn't like it. so why do banks do it? hello? hello?! if your bank doesn't let you talk to a real person 24/7, you need an ally. hello? ally bank. your money needs an ally. if your a man with low testosterone, you should know that axiron is here. the only underarm treatment for low t. that's right, the one you apply to the underarm. axiron is not for use in women or anyone younger than 18. axiron can transfer to others through direct contact.

women, especially those who are or who may become pregnant, and children should avoid contact where axiron is applied as unexpected signs of puberty in children or changes in body hair or increased acne in women may occur. report these signs and symptoms to your doctor if they occur. tell your doctor about all medical conditions and medications. do not use if you have prostate or breast cancer. serious side effects could include increased risk of prostate cancer; worsening prostate symptoms; decreased sperm count; ankle, feet, or body swelling; enlarged or painful breasts; problems breathing while sleeping; and blood clots in the legs. common side effects include skin redness or irritation where applied, increased red blood cell count, headache, diarrhea, vomiting, and increase in psa. see your doctor, and for a 30-day free trial, go to axiron.com. [ male announcer ] how do you turn an entrepreneur's dream... ♪ into a scooter that talks to the cloud? ♪ or turn 30-million artifacts... ♪

into a high-tech masterpiece? ♪ whatever your business challenge, dell has the technology and services to help you solve it. the federal task force headed by vice president biden is putting together proposals on curbing gun violence. his son, an attorney general, is

helping to get proposals in his state. >> they would ban large capacity magazines, ban firearms within 1,000 feet of schools and make reporting of lost and stolen firearms mandatory. bo biden joins us now from wilmington, delaware. thank you for coming in, mr. attorney general. >> good to be on. >> i want to read you a quote from a gun owner in your state. he's been shooting weapons, he says, since he was 7 years old and began to buy weapons for protection after he was a victim of a home invasion with a gun, frankly, pointed at him. he says, quote, i'm really worried about them taking away our second amendment rights. i don't know if more gun control is the answer. so when you hear from somebody who's actually participated in the situation where they had to defend themselves from crime and that's why he took up a weapon, what do you say to that person? >> well, number one, i say that i and the governor and the

lieutenant governor, all of whom were part of putting forward this package today, believe in the second amendment. i believe in the heller case made that clear, there's a constitutional right to bear and keep arms. but it is not an absolute right. it is one that even in the heller case, it opened up the question about -- that there can be limitations on that right. what we did today is try to propose a comprehensive package on three prongs of this strategy. what we put forward today was how to curb gun violence in our state. the second part of that package somehow we deal with school safety. the third part is how we deal with the mental health insurance and the intersection between mental health and the gun issue. the most important of those measures is a measure to really give teeth to the 1968 gun control act, which has

categories of citizens which have prohibited a whole group of people, convicted felons, fugitives from justice, people who have been dishonorably discharged from the military, as well as people who are subject to a stay away order in a domestic violence situation. so your second amendment rights are alive and well. also have common sense measures to make sure our communities and our children are safe. >> you take a look at these list of proposals. it almost looks like a wish list for national change to gun laws. background checks. tightening background checks. an assault weapons ban. ban on high capacity magazines. it sounds familiar to what your father is working on at the very same time. is this a blueprint for him? >> oh, you know, i don't know,

kate. you know, i'm confident that some the things we've proposed are being considered. the administration's talked about that. i, like you, look forward to the vice president's report to the president tomorrow. you know, my father spent a lot of time working with all the stakeholders from the nra to sportsmen to victims to survivors. he was on the phone with many of the survivors of the tragedy of connecticut over this weekend. i personally listened to -- was in and out of the room when he was on some of these calls which are private callings. i would go to the door and go away when i knew he was on the phone with these mops and dads. so he's listened to everyone who has a stake in this. and is doing his best to come up with a comb prehencive strategy to put forward to the president. and that's make sure we don't have another tragedy like connecticut and make sure citizens are safe. the second amendment is respected. and we're ultimately safer. >> i know you and your father are very close. have you talked to him about

these proposals? have you talked to him about the task force that he's working on? >> i talkeded to my dad all the time as you know, kate, but i don't talk about what i talk to him about. i know he's listened to all the stakeholders and is working with his staff and the folks in the white house, coming up with a comprehensive strategy. our comprehensive strategy that our lieutenant governor put forward today is not just on the gun violence piece but there are pieces that deal with the mental health insurance. under current law in our state and federally, people that have been adjudicated mentally ill are the ones that are prohibited. what if someone's been diagnosisesed as a paranoid schizophrenic? is that someone who should be able to walk into a dick's sporting goods and purchase a weapon? those are the discussions we're in the process of having and

whether or not we need to revisit some of the categories in my state and nationally. i very much look forward to congress acting on some of these. doing it on a state by state is sometime also not the most productive ways to do it. >> when you talk about background checks, how do you enforce background checks when you're dealing with a transaction between two private individuals, that typically doesn't get recorded here in the united states? how would you deal with enforcement of private sales? >> our statute goes beyond closing the quote/unquote gun show loophole. it mean there's a lot of transactions that take place at gun shows. ours are very simple. we would apply the same burden on a licensee to do a background

check of a prospective purchaser on any sale or transfer of a weapon. so anytime anybody sells a weapon in our state with very limited exceptions, they would have to seek out and tap into the n.i.c.s., and it's been around since the brady bill, and tap into that. and that's what our bill would require. as you know, joe, you know, the brady bill being implemented was controversial. there were those who made the implementation of it difficult. there's aspects of it that still aren't fully implemented in terms of getting all the ten categories of prohibited persons in that database. between 1.5 million and 2 million people, prohibited people, have gone and attempted to buy weapons and have been stopped. nearly half of those people going to try to purchase weapons have been convicted felons.

so we know an application that will save lives and make our communities, at least in our state, i believe, safer. >> we have to leave it there today. bo biden, delaware's attorney general. thanks. still ahead, president obama says he likes a, quote, good party, but what do folks on capitol hill agree? we'll examine the role the president's social habits will play in his second term. ♪ ♪ ♪ hi dad.

many years from now, when the subaru is theirs... hey. you missed a spot. ...i'll look back on this day and laugh. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. that your mouth is under attack, from food particles and bacteria. try fixodent. it helps create a food seal defense for a clean mouth and kills bacteria for fresh breath. ♪ fixodent, and forget it.

with the battle lines drawn on spending and the debt ceiling, should president obama be trying to make friends with congressional republicans? he was asked about that today. listen to this. >> most people who know me know i'm a pretty friendly guy. and i like a good party. and the truth is that when i was in the senate, i had great relationships other there. up to the point i became president, this is not an

accusation that you heard very frequently. >> joining us now is cnn congressional correspondent gdaa bash and cnn's political commentator gloria borger. dana, you're on capitol hill talking to both sides. how big a problem is this for the president? >> it is a problem. about the fact there really is a confrontational tone. he's right, with more parties together or socializing, really change that, probably at this point, no. but part of the issue is that there isn't a lot of trust and there isn't a lot of trust because they don't get together. they haven't built that trust across party lines. not just across party lines but even within the party. so i think listening to republicans and democrats on capitol hill, they really feel like you know what, it is the president's job, instead of having golf outings with his aides who already know him and like him, do it with members of congress who he doesn't really know. it really matters -- >> but he doesn't really like

either -- >> you know what, it's probably true but -- >> are we now seeing the real conflict consequence of that, the fact he's not building any bridges there? >> the job of a president i would argue is to build relationships with capitol hill. not only with people who like him and who have voted for him, but people who are on the other team. now, the president made the point today and it's a real and decent point, which is lots of republicans don't want to be seen with him. the president said the optic, of that aren't really good. but the truth of the matter is you can always invite people to dinner privately at the white house. i was told during the debt ceiling negotiations in 2011, the summer of 2011, a senior democrat suggests, why tonight you have a bunch of folks over to dinner, and the president said, no, i'm not going to do that. that's his job. >> they argue, or the president, i should say, argues, they take absolutist positions, and they're the ones who are

refusing to negotiate. true or not? >> look, i think it's easy to demonize people when you don't know them. that's what dana's hearing from the hill. even democrats don't know the president very well. >> and here's an example of that. joe manch in, probably the most conservative democrat in the senate now, when he was first elected, he heard from the president, and then not again till he came out against guns. the whole idea is kind of surprising, because every senate vote matter, and joe manchin is somebody who strayed. er in mind not talking to republicans, it's fellow democrats he needs and doesn't always have. >> are we talking about it and it's kind of a washington parlor game, are they friends, are they not friends -- >> no, it matters, it matters. >> bill clinton. bill clinton would always go to his staff. talk to any former staffer and the president would say, who do i need to play golf with this weekend. who do i need to call. what do i need to do. there are stories that are so famous about people getting

calls from bill clinton at midnight, 1:00 in the morning -- >> does this affect his legacy if he doesn't start connecting with the republicans? >> well, i think it affects what no, i think it affects what he can get done. >> you talk about bill clinton, he loved to socialize. >> still does. >> not so much. he them to the residents and brought them out on the balcony and he would talk to them about legislation that they didn't want to do. he didn't want to be there. >> you don't have to love them. >> you don't have to love them, but you need them. presidents need to do their jobs with people they don't really like. that can include a lot of members of congress. you need to try to get it done. >> in any industry. in politics and business and media and relationships help. i think we can all -- >> the president said look, i tried, but they don't like me.

>> thank you so much. >> up next, free tickets for next week's presidential inauguration are now being handed out. they are not for everyone. we will explain.

>> cubans face the loosest travel restrictions in 50 years. we have that and other top stories. >> president castro will allow cubans to leave the island with only a passport. they previously neated an exit permit. they can stay abroad for two years, twice as long as before. they have the ability to return.

strict travel laws have been in place since he took power. apple stock demanded that i foreign 5 may be waning. that's the lowest level since february. senator chuck schumer who chairs the committee on the committee said they are not to be sold. he is asking stub hub craigslist to keep an eye out for anyone trying to sell tickets. the lottery is now closed. jim? >> good luck on that. thanks so much. >> i'm sure we will see some of those popping up. >> all right. one of the world's largest species of snakes found a new home here in the united states. coming up next. ♪

♪ [ male announcer ] don't just reject convention. drown it out. introducing the all-new 2013 lexus ls f sport. an entirely new pursuit. introducing the all-new 2013 lexus ls f sport. ...so as you can see, geico's customer satisfaction is at 97%. mmmm tasty. and cut! very good. people are always asking me how we make these geico adverts. so we're taking you behind the scenes. this coffee cup, for example, is computer animated. it's not real. geico's customer satisfaction is quite real though. this computer-animated coffee tastes dreadful. geico. 15 minutes could save you 15 % or more on car insurance. someone get me a latte will ya, please?

but with advair, i'm breathing better. so now i can be in the scene. advair is clinically proven to help significantly improve lung function. unlike most copd medications, advair contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator working together to help improve your lung function all day. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking advair. if you're still having difficulty breathing, ask your doctor if including advair could help improve your lung function. get your first full

prescription free and save on refills at advaircopd.com. >>ar a massive hunt in the florida everglades. >> joe, scientists don't ever

expect to bib completely eradic but they can put a lit on the exploding population. the first of the snakes caught at the research facility. >> no one knows homany are out there. there may be up to 100,000 slithering pythons. some nearly 20 feet long in floater's everglades. the nonnative snakes have no natural enemies. >> for we remove one snake, we have done a good thing. they bring one snake and that's 7 hundred less than we have in the ecosystem. >> that's the result they are hoping for. they pate $25 to sign up to hunt down the everglades's enemy number one. there cash prizes to the hunter who records the most kills and

the hunter with the largest. it ticks off and runs for a month. this snake expert showed off a 14 footer caught in a back yard pool. his advice to the hunters, simple. >> don't get wit and don't shoot someone. >> here spoked his stick under rocks, a favorite hiding place. the sun was nearly down over the glades, but matthew knows finding one won't be easy. >> look at the land. like a needle in a haystack. >> there is evidence pythons were here. a stall. >> python. >> they have to be brought in dead to drop off stations. the first seven kills came into a research facility near fort lauderdale. >> this snake would be two or three years old. >> for wildlife officials this is about more than killing snakes in the grass.

they are hoping to gain a better understanding of what they are up against. >> what are do they eat? what's in their bellies? who species are they targeting. >> pet owners may be responsible for the non-venomous constrictors getting in. when they get too big to handle, they dumped them. darkness is falling and matthews is walking the brush along the trail. the road that bisects the area. they often come out seeking the heat off the pavement. >> i have been looking for snakes like that. my dad used to take me out and we could always find snakes like that. >> what are he knew he needed most, luck, was not with him. >> it makes it seem like pythons are everywhere out in the wild. if you are looking for them, you would be hard pressed to find

them. >> lance armstrong apologized ahead of an expected confession. >> president obama over the debt ceiling. the u.s. and european allies take action in northern africa. high demand and short flies of the flu vaccine. a preview and a look at the preparations for inauguration day. wolf blitzer is off and you are in "the situation room." . >> we are waiting for any news coming out of one of the sports interviews. disgraced cyclist lance armstrong sat down with oprah and before that interview, he made a personal and tearful

apology to the cancer charity he founded about the doping that led him to being stripped of seven tour de france titles. working the story for us and what's the latest you are hearing there? >> around lunchtime today, lance armstrong showed up at the headquarters of the live strong foundation and met with the staff. i am hold it lasted about 15 to 20 minutes and it was tearful on lance armstrong's part. he apologized to the staff for the stress he caused them over the years and he also urged them to continue fighting for those suffering from cancer. he did not talk or admit to steroid use in the meeting this afternoon. >> it's a script that makes a hollywood writer jealous. a cycling athlete gets cancer and nearly dies and comes back to win the world's race, a record breaking seven straight

times. by the way he starts a cancer foundation that raised $470 million and has provided inspiration to millions around the world. but a dark cloud hovering over this story never blue past. suspicions that grew into allegations that lance armstrong used performance-enhancing drugs to accomplish the feats. when the united states's anti-doping agency released evidence of a sophisticated doping program. armstrong was stripped of the tour de france title and banned from all olympic sports for life. one by one, sponsors have left him too. armstrong was forced out from live strong, the cancer charity he founded. armstrong kept a low profile at his austin home, but armstrong's repeated denials over the years to protect his name angered many. seven years ago he denied using steroids under oath in this

videotaped deposition. he was sued by a texas insurance company that had paid miscellaneousive bonuses to armstrong for winning consecutive titles. >>. >> you have never taken performance enhancing drugs in connection with your cycling career? >> correct. >> that would include any substance that has been banned. is that fair to say? >> correct. >> give me the definition of what that would include? >> that would include anything on the banned list. >> former teammates found guilty of doping went on record. >> did you see him using other performance enhancing drugs? >> at times. >> we took what we all took. no difference between lance armstrong and say the majority of them. >> repercussions. why is he doing this now? one reason is that it gives him

a shot at a competitive triathlon career in which he is banned for life. age 41, he doesn't have time left to make a clean start in another sport. >> the question will become to what extent will lance armstrong confess? what will he talk about on thursday night? he is not out of the woods yet. there other sponsors that want money paid back and other legal issues he is facing. this is a delicate situation for lance armstrong as he enters the interview. >> thanks for that and we will have more on the huge legal implications for lance armstrong including what can happen if he lies in a sworn spoedeposition. >> there is a lot to talk about. a lot of questions i have for sure. >> we are watching the coming battle over the debt ceiling. both sides speaking out and neither is blinking in the game of chicken that could take the

country to a financial brink. cnn's white house correspondent brianna keilar said the president was ready for a fight. >> he reiterated that he will not negotiate with house republicans on the debt ceiling, the end, period. congress has a responsibility to increase the debt ceiling and use it as a bargaining chip is absurd. >> tough talk from the bully pulpit. >> they're have two choices. act responsibly and pay america's bills or they can act irresponsibly and put america through another economic crisis. but they will not collect ransom in exchange for not crashing the economy. >> republicans are insisting the

debt ceiling is tied to spending cuts. the president gave in on that demand in the bruising battle of 2011. not again says president obama. >> the difference between this year and 2011 is the fact that we have made $1.2 trillion in cuts. at the time i indicated that there were cuts that we can sensibly make that would not damage our economy. would not impede growth. >> in a statement, john boehner stood by the efforts to use the debt ceiling as leverage. the american people do not support raising the debt ceiling without reducing spending at the same time, he said. the consequences of failing to increase the debt ceiling are real and so too are the consequences of allowing our spending problem to go unresolved. >> if you think about the first four years. >> hoary addressed concern that is the new cabinet lacks diversity. of the 16 cabinet positions,

only two are women. recent appointments to posts have been white men. the president promised the diversity of his second term cabinet will meet that of his first. >> i would suggest that everybody wait until they have seen all my appointments. who is in the white house staff and who is in my cabinet before they rush to judgment. >> the president responded to criticism that he has not spent enough time building relationships across the aisle. dismissing the notion. >> where upon to this truism about me not socializing enough and patting folks on the back and all that stuff, most people who know me know i'm a pretty friendly guy. i like a good party. >> that got a chuckle, but president obama said socializing is important and he can do a better job. he downplayed the suggestion that his reputation is not being the crummiest of presidents got

in the way of his brokering deals with congress. he said he played golf with john boehner and had a good time, but that doesn't result in a deal in 2011. >> it sure didn't. >> another big press conference was the issue of gun control. what did the president say when he was asked about gun control and the task force that he was asked to give him recommendations. >> he has the recommendations from vice president biden. we were expecting those to come tomorrow. he has those and he will review them one on one with the vice president to discuss them. he would be rolling out his proposal and we will wait for that. another thing he was asked about and this is amid signals that perhaps the white house is not going to pursue an assault weapons ban is aggressively and certainly gun control advocates hoped. he was asked about that and side stepped recommendations. we will have to see. >> we are waiting to see what the recommendations are.

thanks, brianna. >> 47 states are now reporting wight spread flu activity including new york where a public health state of emergency is in effect. for people who waited until now to get a flu shot, a vaccine has gotten a lot harder. what are you seeing? >> they are reporting spot shortages and one area is new york. that's because the surge in demand after that public health emergency was issued over the weekend. the order gets pharmacies more latitude to administer shots, but it means pharmacies are short on supply. this pharmacy in brooklyn has a sign telling them they give flu shots. best they could do is put people on a waiting list. >> hopefully we will have the shots tomorrow.

we have 80 shots and your number is 76. >> he ran out on sunday after new york's governor declared a public health emergency over the weekend. the declaration allows pharmacists the ability to give children flu shots. in new york they are restricted to adults. >> what was the weekend like? >> it was chaotic. a lot of people coming in a panic and want to get the whole family immunized. >> it wasn't much different. >> it's insane and as soon as the public emergency was declared the, the floodgates open and they were coming in in hoards looking to get it. >> by monday morning, this walgreens replenished the supply of vaccines. other chains reported shortages at some of the locations. while there may be a shortage of flu vaccine in places, there is no shortage of new yorkers taking to social media to write about experiences like this tweet. this flu is brutal. not hungry and whole body aches

and throw kills. some folks are capitalizing on disgruntled new yorkers expressing themselves through social media. red notes where people are reporting sickness. his point is give people an x-ray of the city without surveying millions of people. >> we got the tweets and took them to the machine-learning system that decides where people are sick and healthy and plot them out. >> new york is one of six cities that ap is monitoring. as are the vaccine, they told us there many doses to be shipped out. if you have trouble finding them where you live, there many websites that may help you find it in your area. one set up by the government is a good place to start. >> i will take that one. thanks so much, mary. still ahead, did lance armstrong

commit perjury when he denied doping under oath? we will get the story and the u.s. undertakes a dangerous entanglement with terrorists in northern africa. joplin, missouri, come back from a devastating tornado. man: and now we're helping the east coast recover from hurricane sandy. we're a leading global insurance company, based right here in america. we've repaid every dollar america lent us. everything, plus a profit of more than $22 billion. for the american people. thank you, america. helping people recover and rebuild -- that's what we do. now let's bring on tomorrow.

looks like you're in a pickle. yeah. can you get me out of it ? just so happens i know a chap...

book any flight and hotel together and get access to our free personal concierge service. any need, any question, we're on call 24/7. >> u.s. and european allies are concerned about two terrorist safe havens in africa. they are now taking action against islamic jihadists who made bold and deadly moves in somalia and bali. chris, what's going on? >> officials are very worried that al qaeda may be establishing a safe haven in africa the same way they did in

afghanistan 12 to 13 years ago. they are joining an international effort to try to aggressively go after the affiliates there. after a disastrous rescue mission over the weekend, it shows how dangerous it can be to operate in that part of the world. american soldiers were back on the ground as a bloody battle to rescue hostages ended in disaster and death. for a lot of americans, somali conjures up images of black hawk down. this time the americans did not take the lead. they were backing up a french resc rescue quad. >> they encountered resistance and all-around a botched

attempt. >> they're set fighter jets into airspace and they were not needed in the mission. they flew in at night and faced resistance from the islamist who is killed two soldiers and likely the options. >> the french intelligence agent was abducted and they said factors triggered the rescue mission with the about the and the weather-clearing. >> they're seemed to have intelligence from the hostage. >> even that was not enough to free the hostage. they underscore the difficulty of operating in this part of africa. >> somali has been particularly difficult and a few steady partners on the ground and people providing the kind of

intelligence and the french might need author this. >> the bigger battle could occur on the other side of the continent where french war planes started bombing the camps in the u.s. that is considering what assistance to give to the french in this effort. kate? >> surprising to some that the u.s. acknowledged involvement in this mission, but we will be watching how things develop over there. thanks so much. justice clarence thomas catches people off guard. details of what he did for the first time in seven years. could lance armstrong go to jail for perjury? the legal ramifications that the disgraced cyclist could be facing. just the right amount of light. so you see everything the way it's meant to be seen. maybe even a little better.

visit your eyecare professional today to ask about our newest lenses, transitions vantage and transitions xtractive lenses. experience life well lit. ask which transitions adaptive lens is best for you. music: "make someone happy" music: "make someone happy" ♪it's so important to make meone happy.♪.♪it's so e ♪make just one heart to heart you - you sing to♪ ♪one smile that cheers you ♪one face that lights when it nears you.♪ ♪and you will be happy too. capella university understands nurses are dealing with a than wider range of issues. and there are ever-changing regulations. when you see these challenges, do you want to back away or take charge?

with a degree in the field of healthcare or nursing from capella university, you'll have the knowledge to advance your career while making a difference in the lives of patients. let's get started at capella.edu.

. >> here's a look at the headlines from across the country making news today. former president george hw bush is discharged from houston's methodist hospital where he spent more than seven weeks being treated for bronchitis and bacterial infection. he won't need medical attention at home and he will continue

physical therapy. he is the oldest of the four living former presidents. the cause of death of actress natalie wood has been changed more than three decades after her death. the los angeles county coroner's office listed it as accidental drowning after she was found in 1981, but a new report cites bruises on her body as the reason for changing the cause of death. now to drowning and other undetermined factors. that mystery continues. here's another one. one of the great mysteries of the last half century. a crime boss said he knows what happened to union leader jimmy hoffa. he told w nbc in new york that he is buried in a field in northern oakland county, michigan. he claims to have no mafia connections and knows they buried him with the plan of

moving him and never did. surprise, surprise. supreme court justice clarence thomas has broken his silence. he had not spoken at an oral argument for years. he did it by making a joke about lawyers from yale. his law school and alma mater when compared to lawyers from harvard. the transcript released by the court does not capture the flavor of the exchange, but the lawyer arguing was apparently not so pleased i'm sure. i'm sure there were audible gasps when he spoke. >> maybe this is a turn of the time. >> i wouldn't expect much more. >> lance armstrong and the legal implications of doping. a man went to prison for helping athletes with performance-enhancing drugs. plus jeffrey tube in coming up next. what are you doing? nothing. are you stealing our daughter's school supplies and taking them to work? no, i was just looking for my stapler and my...

this thing. i save money by using fedex ground and buy my own supplies. that's a great idea. i'm going to go... we got clients in today. [ male announcer ] save on ground shipping at fedex office. are you flo? yes. is this the thing you gave my husband? well, yeah, yes. the "name your price" tool. you tell us the price you want to pay, and we give you a range of options to choose from. careful, though -- that kind of power can go to your head.

that explains a lot. yo, buddy! i got this. gimme one, gimme one, gimme one! the power of the "name your price" tool. only from progressive. is a fantastic experience. 30 shrimp for $11.99. i can't imagine anything better. you're getting a ton of shrimp, and it tastes really good! [ male announcer ] hurry in to red lobster's 30 shrimp for just $11.99! choose any two of five savory shrimp selections, like mango jalapeño shrimp and parmesan crunch shrimp. two delicious shrimp selections on one plate! all with salad and unlimited cheddar bay biscuits. 30 shrimp, just $11.99 for a limited time. wow, that's a lot of shrimp. i'm ryon stewart, i'm the ultimate shrimp lover, and i sea food differently.

happening now, jail time possible. lance arm sfrong he confesses to doping. newtown connecticut is one month since the school massacre and why your paycheck just got smaller. baldwin with joe. you are in "the situation room". a massive media presence outside the home of lance armstrong. the disgraced cyclist apologized to the charity he found. that was ahead of an interview with oprah winfrey where armstrong was expected to confess to the doping that cost him his seven tour de france title.

>> with jeffrey toobin and david epstein in new york. conte supplied barry bonds and marion jones and others with performance-enhancing drugs and full discloser. he served four months in prison. first, david, welcome to all of you by the way. first to you, david. there is a lot going on in terms of this interview that lance armstrong is doing with oprah winfrey. have you learned anything about what went on in the interview so far? >> i want to be cautious because i don't know that anybody except the people who were there know for sure. he will confess, but it will be limited in terms of details. >> confess to a degree? what does it mean to you? >> there won't be specific apologies to people and not

details about how things were done or going point by point through the doping agency report and sort of a more blanket discussion or confession. >> let's look back a bit. there is such a long string of evidence or comments about doping and lance armstrong that spanned years. we want to play you something that was said about doping allegations back in 2004. listen to this. >> you sort of reached a point where we can't tolerate it anymore and we are sick and tired of the allegations and we will do everything to fight them. they are untrue and we filed action. in england and filed action in france against everybody involved. enough is enough. >> he didn't only deny the allegations, he fought back. does that make the apology, if it does come now, all the harder to accept? >> i think for a lot of people it will.

he koor pursued the process to really clear himself, he decided not to partake in the process. that's the opposite of fighting. that's equivalent to pleading no contest. there a lot of people who were armed in his wake and deserve apologies and not just a confession. >> we want to talk about the potential legal implications and start by playing a chunk of tape from lance armstrong's 2005 deposition. listen. >> you have never taken any performance enhancing drug in connection with your cycling career? >> correct. >> that are includes any substance that has ever been banned? is that fair to say? >> correct. >> there is another part we don't have on tape, but we do have in transcript form. i want to read you some of that.

this is the questioning of lance armstrong. the question. you understand that although we are in the conference room of your testimony as if you are in a court of law, do you understand? >> correct. and the penalties are perjury attached this to deposition like they would in a court of law. of course. in the event that armstrong has actually made certain admissions relating to his alleged use ing the drugs, do you think he has a perjury problem? >> no for a simple reason. the date was 2005, that was pushing eight years ago. the statute of limitations in texas is three years. he is completely safe from a perjury prosecution. the matter of civil litigation is different. for criminal cases, i don't see how that could be the basis. >> by civil litigation, you mean he could be sued? >> correct.

he already has been sued by the london times. you heard that in that piece of tape he sued the london times for making an allegation about the performance enhancing drugs and received a settlement and now the paper is suing to get that back. there have been a number of possible lawsuits already discussed. for example, the tour de france prize money which is over $3 million. they are considering legal action to get that back because he is apparently and again we don't know what he is saying, he is acknowledging that he won the tour de france while using the drugs which would be entitling civil action against them. >> we will get your take on how all of this is going on for what we expect and whatever caveat we neat to put.

first i top the play you another part of that deposition we are talking b. this back from november 30th, 2005. >> you have never used your own blood for doping purposes, for example? >> that would be banned. >> okay. i'm not trying to agitate you, but making sure it's clear. okay? >> you have been on the inside knowing more about this than most anyone, including in terms of performance enhancing drugs and supplying them to star athletes. what do you make of all this and how he went about it? so many people call it the most sophisticated doping operation they have seen. >> it was a sophisticated program in the report on pages 129 through 139. it's almost a blueprint as to how you circomvent the procedures in place.

we will hear a discussion about the people who have been bullied and sued and i don't know what's worse. the cheating? i was very much involve and i decided early on the best thing to do was to step up and tell the truth and do it for all the right reasons. as a result two lawsuits were filed against me, one by marion jones in the amount of $25 million and the other by shane moseley in the amount of $12 million. these were fraudulent lawsuits. they lied in the declarations filed when con41ed. i prevailed in both cases, but i do understand the people and the support team members as an example around lance armstrong and how they feel they didn't have the resources to defend themselves against someone like a lance armstrong. i also feel there is an accountability by the legal advisers that he has. my opinion is they knew full well he was using

performance-enhancing drugs and fraud when he filed the declarations as a part of the lawsuits. i don't know what is more damaging. is it the fact that he used the drugs and competing against other athletes or a cover up in the damage he caused to all those people there after. >> when you see where we are today with the possibility that he will be admitting doping, do you think he can redeem himself? >> the longer that you lie and carry on like this, as an example, marion jones lied for about an eight-year period. everyone remembers her crying and weeping. when i looked at marion, i saw her children and mother and i realized they didn't lie and cheat. they didn't do anything wrong, yet they suffered tremendously. i didn't think it through.

i'm not so sure lance armstrong thought it through. it wasn't until i got into a prison camp and my members came to visit and i looked in their eyes and i saw the pain and suffering that i had caused to them. i realized how reckless i had been in making that decision to join this culture of ped use in sports. it was a mistake and it was wrong. all wrong for me. >> the question we hear again and again, why should people care about athletes using performance-enhancing drugs. many people say we glorify athletes too much and we should be glorifying scientists. >> the question depends where you want to start. if you care about sports, i think, there is hardly anything in the universe that is more dependent on the rules. the basic values than sports. sports is one issue and the other that are against the united states law. or the other of whether ends

justify the means. there a lot of angles that people are not required to care. if you care about athletes following law like other people do, respecting sort of the very basic building blocks of what we think is valuable, it's something you care about. >> the story is being asked, why now? why now? did he hit rock bottom. >> there is no other choice. the strategy in retrospect that looks like deny as long as you absolutely possibly can and maybe there is nothing else to be gained from denying it anymore. now he admits to pressure with people with the live strong foundation to minimize the damage being done and a lot of personal finances are tied up in things reled to the foundation. if people view him as reteamed

to a certain extent and he wants to get back to competing and he is not going to go on a run for weekend for fun. he needs to be time and beat people and have official records this. won't help that at all. if after that he goes with the anti-doping authorities and gives them new information they didn't already have, maybe he would be doing triathlons again by the time he is 50. >> and the issue of proportionality. if he admits that this is bad, he has done a lot for cancer research and shouldn't that go into the equation in the long run? >> it does. all of the issues we are dealing with now are really about his reputation. there is no court of reputation in the united states. people are going to make up their own minds about him. it is clear this guy has done a tremendous good in terms of cancer. he lied egregiously and bullied

and intimidated people less powerful than he is. both of those ark peer to be true. i don't know how to sort that out myself. it's a complicated equation and we don't have the government to do that and cowers to do that. people make up their own minds about lance armstrong and everybody is going to go about it differently. >> final question quickly. you have been in the middle of it and you watch it unfold now. what's your best advice to lance armstrong or another athlete? >> i'm working with a fighter who enrolled in a program with the anti-doping association. he tested 24-7, 365, 2012 he won fiter of the year. my point is you can do it clean. you can win without the use of drugs. there is a use or lose mentality that existed for decades. you need to step up, do it the right way.

it can be done. and don't make that decision that i made. we look at the series of elite athletes that went down. they made bad decisions and it didn't serve them and won't serve you. >> thank you so much for your time. we are awaiting to hear what comes out of the interview and if it is, lance armstrong admitting that he did what he is alleged to have done. still ahead, one month since the newtown school tragedy. anderson cooper is there and we will get an update from him next.

. >> one month ago today, an unspeakable tragedy struck a connecticut town. a gunman burst into the sandy hook elementary school. relatives of some victims unveiled a campaign to prevent future tragedies. anderson cooper is live from newtown, connecticut. you spent unfortunately a lot of time there in newtown, meeting the families and almost experiencing the pain on the ground. what are you hearing there tonight?

>> this is a community still devastated and emotions are raw since the shootings. much of the country may have moved on, but for the people here, it is all still horribly fresh. that meeting he talked about at the town hall earlier today, there were family members from 11 of the shooting victims who came forward to start what they hope was a national dialogue. they were announcing the formation of a group called the school safety and here's what the mother of dylan hockley, nicole hockley said at the town hall meeting. >> do i not to be someone sharing my experience and consoling another parent next time. i do not want there to be a next time. the sandy hook promises the start of our change. it's a promise we make for your community, but we need a nation

of communities to join us in making and delivering on these promises if we are going to achieve true transformation. >> so many of the parents and families here and the community hopes that something can come out of this. exactly what, a lot of people are not sure, but they hope this is a start of some change. >> we understand you have something special tonight courtesy of singer kenny chesney. >> yeah, we will be broadcasting "ac 360" from here at 8:00 and 10:00 and talking to familiy member who is lost loved ones. kenny chesney will perform a special rendition of amazing grace. grace mcdonald used to sing his songs with her mom while they were waiting at the bus stop to go to school. kenny is going to sing amazing grace in memory of her and the

other victims. that will be on at 8:00 as well. >> we will wait to see that. as anderson mentioned, they will be anchoring "ac 360" at 8:00 eastern. you won't want to miss that. >> president obama's second inaugural is a week away and big changes are under way from what happened four years ago. >> i barack hussein obama solemnly swear -- i got a flat . hmmm. uh... yeah, can you find a take where it's a bit more dramatic on that last line, yeah? yeah i got it right here. someone help me!!! i have a flat tire!!! well it's good... good for me. what do you think? geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance.

>> erin burnett is following rape cases in india. a well-known actress will speak out. what else do you have coming up in the show? >> the star in "slum dog millionaire" and has an amazing story to tell about her experiences in india with men. here's what she had to say about something her mother went through. >> one of her first horrifying experiences was when she was traveling to school. she had one of these men on a delivery bike decided to hit her in the chest for a good feel, if you please. he sped away with a laugh on his face. my mother was so petrified and

shocked, she did not know how to react. she decided to carry stones in her bag. bless her, she she account attack him the next time she saw him. >> she talks about the recent horrific rapes they had since that awful case. breaking news on mali, the u.s.-involvement and the conversation i had with the military commander of the islamic forces. they are operating with the french now. >> a lot coming up. up front at the top of the hour. thanks so much. >> inauguration day is say week away and evidence of what is always a massive undertaking is all over the nation's capital. cnn's brian todd is in the national mall with a look at the preparations and a preview of the big day. brian? >> reporter: the excitement is building and the preparations are continuing. less than a week out from the inauguration. you have the west front of the capitol. you can see the flags being

draped and the presidential podium almost complete. hum hundreds of seats for the on the west front of the capi l capital, and jumbotrons are going to be set up shortly. you can't stage an event without the all-important port-a-johns. it may not be to the scale it was four years ago, but it has every bit the symbolism and importance. this year, it will be scaled down, if you call about 900,000 people scaled down. officials say for president obama's second inauguration, washington's national mall will have about half as many people as it did in 2009. but it's still a huge undertaking. millions watching on tv, washington abuzz with ceremony, symbolism, that big event feeling. >> it is obviously important because it's, you know, the peaceful transfer of power and it's something that the park service is thrilled to be a part

of. but this is what we do. we do big events. >> about 250,000 people have coveted tickets for areas close to the president's platform. four years ago, many who had those tickets walked away angry. thousands never got past the security entrances on the periphery of the mall. >> one of the main reasons there were such holdups four years ago, the number one reason was the huge amount of people, record. but the number two reason was people went to the wrong gates. they had to wait online forever, and then be told you have to go somewhere else. >> hundreds of confused ticket holders got stuck in washington's third street tunnel and never saw the inauguration. but this year, the third street tunnel is going to be closed for the inauguration and organizers have come up with a special app for ticket holders. it shows your location. then you touch the color of your ticket and they'll show you where the closest entrances are. as always, law enforcement agencies from the secret service to the d.c. police, park and

capital police will handle security. they'll close street. air and water stratraffic will limited. this year has been replete with rehearsals with people playing the president, vice president, chief justice. the last inauguration, john edwards scrambled the words. >> the office of the united states safely. >> just to be safe, he swore in the president a second time. this year, he will too have two swearing ins. the president will use two bibles. one owned by abraham lincoln. the other by martin luther king jr. some advice for those attending, soak it all in. >> here is an opportunity to see our monument's memorials. this is part of the american store wre. >> the national park story is telling people who come to the inauration when the swearing in is over, when the parade is

over, don't everybody rush off the mall at once. they're asking people, take a stroll, see a memorial or two. become a tourist. a big reason is because they don't want a crush of people all going to the d.c. metro rail stop at once. there's only a couple of those stops around here. they don't want that bottleneck of hundreds of thousands of people trying to get off the mall all at once. >> brian todd. cnn's coverage of president obama's second inaugural spans two days. first, the oath of office in a private sayceremony. monday, a public ceremony at the capitol. watch the presidential inauguration starting at 9:00 eastern sunday and monday here on cnn. >> they don't give out a golden globe award for the most feared supporting actor, but ahead, jeanne moos is about to show us the flu had just about everyone a little spooked last night. ♪

♪ we're lucky, it's not every day you find a companion as loyal as a subaru. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru.

stop! stop! stop! come back here! humans -- we are beautifully imperfect creatures living in an imperfect world. that's why liberty mutual insurance has your back with great ideas like our optional better car replacement. if your car is totaled, we give you the money to buy one a model year newer. call... and ask one of our insurance experts about it today. hello?! we believe our customers do their best out there in the world, and we do everything we can to be there for them when they need us. [car alarm blaring] call now and also ask about our 24/7 support and service. call... and lock in your rate for 12 months today. liberty mutual insurance.

responsibility. what's your policy? [ male announcer ] when diarrhea hits, kaopectate stops it fast. powerful liquid relief speeds to the source. fast! [ male announcer ] stop the uh-oh fast with kaopectate. situation room." information coming out of the much anticipated interview lance armstrong is giving to oprah winfrey as we have discussed this hour. according to a source familiar with the interview, lance armstrong's interview was at times emotional, according to

this source who is familiar with that interview. but this person would not go into the specifics of exactly what lance armstrong said, including whether or not he did confess to using performance enhancing drugs, as what expected. we'll have much more on that to come, but we want to bring you the latest news coming into "the situation room." >> some of the industry's biggest stars thought twice before walking down the red carpet or exchanging hand shakes, hugs, kisses at last night's golden globe awards. fear of getting the flu has gone hollywood. >> reporter: here's a symptom seen in people who don't have the flu. they find flu jokes funny. >> this flu season is so bad, hugh hefner is washing down his viagra with theraflu. >> even the grandeur of stardom can't ward off the flu. here is jennifer lawrence not

shaking ryan seacrest's hand. >> reporter: three seconds later, she forgot her scruples and latched on to the next guy who held out his hand. stars, they're sick like us. >> thank you, hollywood. sorry, i'm at the tail end of this flu, and where was kicking myself for not getting the flu shot, but it appears you don't need one. i feel great. >> will hugh jackman's wife feel great after that kiss. >> meryl streep is not here tonight. she has the flu, and i hear she's amazing in it. >> at least meryl streep apparently had the sense to stay home. jimmy kimmel created a public service announcement aimed at workers who won't leave. >> why are you still here? >> take your sick [ bleep ] and go home. >> go the hell home! >> if you do happen to be home with the flu, here's a facebook app for you. help, my friend gave me the flu.